Veruschka!

My Back Pages4

A painting in my sketchbook.
inspired by an image on an old book from the 70s at the Recycle Center.
Gatherings. A place and time where people congregate with common Interest. Positive interest. Negative Interest. Concerts, Political Rallies, Graduations, Birth, Prom, coming out, circumcision, coming of age......
Mobs? Public Execution. Court Trials,
Pop Culture
Rotting Culture
Handshakes
Hugging
Sex
Sports
Funerals
Baptism
Marathon
Rat Race
Rite of Passage.

Wisdom of Crowds

The Wisdom of Crowds: Why the Many Are Smarter Than the Few and How Collective Wisdom Shapes Business, Economies, Societies and Nations, first published in 2004, is a book written by James Surowiecki about the aggregation of information in groups, resulting in decisions that, he argues, are often better than could have been made by any single member of the group. The book presents numerous case studies and anecdotes to illustrate its argument, and touches on several fields, primarily economics and psychology.

The book relates to diverse collections of independently-deciding individuals, rather than crowd psychology as traditionally understood. Its central thesis, that a diverse collection of independently-deciding individuals is likely to make certain types of decisions and predictions better than individuals or even experts, draws many parallels with statistical sampling.

Black and White.

Once again, the connection between two subjects.....where they merged in the past, and how one will always live in the other.

Gimme Space!

Astronomy pic of the day was a huge inspiration for some early work i did out of college. It was a phase of everything outer space. ...... Here is an image of an oil on canvas from that series. They ranged from 4 to 6 feet in width and about 3 to 4 feet high. I wanted these to be some kind of "universal flags". the idea, needless to say, didnt fly. ahem. They are still rolled up in my studio.

Astronomy Pic of the Day

There is a picture of the cosmos for every day of every year. And there will be after the year has ceased to be recorded. We continue to "see" further and further into space and yet never really get any further as a species. We just have stronger telescopes. And i think the more magnified the telescope the smaller an smaller and we become and we just regress back into apes and then amoebas then we climb back into the womb of the angry bloody goddess. This technology here will eat itself. The human race will eat itself. The United States, certainly...will eat itself. However..sit back and please enjoy a picture of the day brought to you by NASA. You might learn something. Maybe even about yourself.
go to http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/astropix.html.
or to the right on Astronomy pic of the day link.
ps, did you know there was an Avalanche on Mars?and Tornadoes in Atlanta?

Cosmic Jelly

These are photos i took of marmalade, jam and various unspeakable substances....

Paint with Swatch

I didnt have any paint at the time, so i went to Walmart in the middle of Virginia countryside and took all the pa int swatches they had. There were two that went together but i dont have a bigger image of the red piece. The two sold at a Montserrat College of Art Auction.

Dress UP

Unfortunately, i do not know who the owner of these images is. I found them online during one of my cyber travels years ago. I rediscovered them and wanted to post them because i love them so much. The subject transforms herself in every image using traditional head pieces, make up and found objects. I found about 20 of them...all stemming from different cultures, all modern and unique. Please comment if you know the artist who made these self portraits. Meanwhile i will keep searching for her. If anyone knows please let me know!

02.01.09 Kimiko Yoshida. I found her again finally! Please look at her website. I think her work is so inspiring.
http://www.kimiko.fr/

My Back Pages 3

Sketchbook March 16th 2008
The top image is a page from my sketchbook. The painting includes an image by Photographer Stefan Falke. It is of a Laura Anderson Barbara costume, worn by the the Brooklyn Jumbies for her exhibit "Jumbie Camp!" Sept 2007. Credit where credit is due. I have a link to Stefan's site and the Brooklyn Jumbies on my Artists links list.
I included X-Mas trees to the image both playing on the word (mas) and also the idea of X-mas as a strange ritual. I'm also interested in how objects can hold visual similarities, while their purpose or meaning can be so different. And in addition, how two things from completely different backgrounds, can be connected if traced far back enough. I also posted a couple old images I found online, one from the Dogon tribe in Africa.

Ancient Art

( Top image is from my sketchbook.)

Ancient cave paintings are more beautiful than anything i could ever imagine. Years ago, I visited the caves at Saint Cirq du Bugue, Dordogne France. We drove up a winding road on the hill past walls of rock. The road came to a dead end where two stone houses jutted out of the rock. I remember an old man who lived in one of these shelters lead us around the back of the house and down into a cave with a flash light....just like he would go into the basement for some wood. At first it was hard to make put anything. It was just scratches on the walls of this musty dark hole in the ground. But then i switched my train of thought and suddenly symbols began to jump out at me. A man with a large belly and even larger phallus leaning over something....Two or three lines made up his face but his expression was breathtaking. It felt as if leaving that cave would disrupt the threads of time and we would emerge in another time and place. For me, being in these caves is like being in a Cathedral.
The top image is a painting out of my sketch book that was inspired by the carvings on the oldest walls.

When i think of ancient art....i am fascinated by which of it is ceremonial such as for hunting or sex, and which images are drawn simply because the artist can do no less.

Military Position

Its a Small World........

.......but theres so much in it!
I started collecting army men about a year ago, not knowing exactly what was drawing me to them. i liked how this simple toy has been around for generations and change only weapons and uniforms depending on current affairs. I actually "played" with these guys at first, arranging them on maps, in a birdcage, on a fake x-tree....etc...feeling like a mad queen preparing for battle. Nothing seemed to fit, i grew bored and threw them onto the pile of "things" that have potential significance. I have Cowboys and Indians, Desert Storm Troopers, Fireman, Policemen, even Nazis (i wish i had some women). they will be put to some use eventually, perhaps in an altar installation or arranged into a parade.....I know that i want them to begin to take on a life of their own and start creating their own rituals......but until then i suppose taking them out and giving them orders every now and then cant hurt!

My Back Pages 1

Sketchbook March 11th 2008
Exploring the idea of a charged object and human spirit. Where has it been, what is its purpose? Has it become something else because of its purpose in the past? Will it be something different when found and put to new use? What makes it a totem, or a ritual object? This charge that resides in an inanimate object.......will it lose its "magic" over time? How much time must pass before an object earns the title "Artifact"?

Un-Fashion

Looking at some collections from this years Paris Fashion week (above) reminded me of an amazing picture book (Un)Fashion by Tibor Kalman. A collection of images cleverly assembled to illustrate how humans clothe and adorn themselves all over the world.

Nick Cave

Nick Cave (Chicago) began his career as a performer and fashion designer, creating fantastic, almost ritualistic costumes for dance and performances. More recently, he has been presenting these costumes as sculptural objects. These works, which he calls Soundsuits, are textured, sensual, elaborately designed assemblages of sometimes unexpected materials that act almost like musical instruments, emitting sound as they move. he describes these pieces as “full body suits constructed of materials that rattle with movement . . . like a coat of armor, [they] embellish the body while protecting the wearer from outside culture.”
Thank You Nick Cave for making Soundsuits..... How i wish to see their intricate detail and craftsmanship in person (or better yet wear one!). They seem like they transform those who put them on. Incredible. I love it.
Check out an interview....